In typical dynomoelectric machine such as an electric motor, generator, alternator, or the like, the stator assembly comprises a generally cylindrical stack of laminations made from a magnetic material and having a plurality of axially extending slots formed in the internal bore thereof. Electrical coils, or more specifically, the side turn portions of electrical coils, are then inserted into these slots in various configurations to produce a desired magnetic field for operation of the device. Because the insulation on the conductors which form the electrical coils can be easily damaged during assembly and insertion and because insertion of the coils into the proper slots is itself a difficult and exacting procedure, there have been developed a variety of complex precision machines for performing these operations. Such machinery includes apparatus for forming and inserting the coils, as well as for inserting the insulators and coil retaining wedges into the stator. Frequently these machines are integrated into a single assembly.
Representative of such machines are those disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,722,063 issued to Richard B. Arnold and U.S. Pat. No. 3,829,953 issued to Richard E. Lauer et al, respectively.
A significant disadvantage in such prior art machines exists in the pusher blades and wedge magazine assembly. Typically, the pusher blades are long, precision machined elements, an arrangement dictated by the arrangement and operation of the machine. Accordingly, these blades are inherently expensive and fragile.
It is further charactertic of such machines to have the wedge magazine automatically loaded from a separate machine or assembly which forms the wedges or insulators and inserts them into wedge receiving slots of the magazine. In the course of loading the wedges into the magazine, the magazine is incrementally rotated or indexed. Subsequently, the pusher blades move axially into the wedge receiving slots of the magazine to force the wedges or insulators into the appropiate slots of the magnetic core. At this particular stage of operation of the machine, it is essential that the pusher blades be in precise alignment with the wedge receiving slots of the magazine. Conversely, any misalignment between the pusher blades and the magazine can result in damage or even destruction of the pusher blade assembly. Nonetheless, because of the configuration of the pusher blade and the arrangement of the blades with respect to the magazine in prior art machines, this misalignment accurs frequently. This results from a variety of factors including accumulation of tolerances in the relatively movable parts of the machine, distortion of the pusher blades themselves which can occur as a result of use and abuse, and incomplete cycling of the magazine.
When such a misalignment condition does occur and the blades are damaged or destroyed, there results both a substantial expense for replacement of the pusher blade assembly and attendant loss of time while the coil and insulator inserting apparatus is disassembled, repaired, and set-up.
Accordingly, it is a general object of the present invention to provide an improved insulator magazine and pusher blade assembly for receiving and inserting insulators or retaining wedges into a magnetic core in conjunction with a coil inserting apparatus which obviates misalignment therebetween.
Another general object of the invention is to provide an improved apparatus for inserting coils and insulators in the slots of a dynamoelectric machine stator.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide such an apparatus in which the insulator pusher blades are rotatably engaged with the rotating wedge magazine to obviate misalignment therebetween during all phases of operation of the apparatus.
Still another object of the invention is to provide such an apparatus in which the pusher blades are slidably supported by the wedge magazine during all phases of operation of the apparatus.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide such an apparatus in which rotation of the pusher blades is effected by synchronous rotation of the pusher blade base and the wedge magazine through the medium of an internal shaft without application of torque to or through the pusher blades.
Still another object of the invention is to provide an improved pusher blade-wedge magazine assembly adaptable for incorporation into existing coil and insulator inserting machinery without significant modification to other parts of the machine and which obviates damage or destruction to the pusher blade assembly resulting from misalignment between the pusher blade assembly and the wedge magazine.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide an improved coil and insulator inserting machine incorporating an improved wedge magazine-pusher blade assembly which substantially reduces problems associated with such assemblies in prior art machines.